Chapter 2: Still trying to figure it out

"Hey wait up!" I yelled. Here I was in this strange land, trying to catch up with a man who was half youkai and my father. This had to be a dream. He slowed down a little, allowing me to fall into steps behind him.

"Listen, I know this might sound strange, but what is your name, sir."

He stopped and looked at me, there seemed to be a little hurt that past through his eyes before he said. "Inuyasha."

"Inuyasha?" I said repeating the sound of it.

"Yes, having a problem that pup,"

"That's my middle name, Inuyasha. I just thought it was some name that my mother found."

"No it's mine," he said.

I smiled; I now had a father and knew his name was. But what exactly happened to my parents, and what was this jewel that those man were talking about?

"Inuyasha!"

"Little late, brat," a boy my age approached us. He looked like a normal human except that his legs were furry, like that of a dog, and he was dragging behind him a tail. He had chestnut hair tied back into a ponytail and green eyes.

"Who's the human," the boy said, then took a sniff of the air. "Never mine, I mean who is the quarter demon that smell like… KAGOME!! Where is she?"

"False alarm, Shippu, she is not here," Inuyasha said.

The boy slumped a little before looking at me again. He stood there studying me for a couple of moments before he looked at Inuyasha. Inuyasha just lean against the tree, watching the both of us.

"I don't get it, he smells of Kagome but looks like you when you go human," said the fox slash human being. "Wait a minute, you mean… Is he…I'll be."

"Akira, this is Shippu, Shippu Akira,"

"Is everyone like you guys," I said.

"Like what?" Shoppu asked.

"Like half human and half something else."

"He doesn't know, Inuyasha?" Shippu asked.

"He hasn't figured out the concept yet," Inuyasha said back.

"No, I am full youkai, he is only half."

"I figured out that part," I said.

"Only a handful of beings are actually youkai," he said.

I still didn't get it, but I figured I was going to press it anymore tonight.

The forest ended and we walked out into a clearing, which sat a village. I could see the lights come from fire lighted torches. My eyes widen as we walked through the village. I couldn't believe it; I was in a feudal village. Everything I had ever read about or seen pictures of was here. Had I somehow travel back through time? People were pulling the cloth back from their doorways to watch us.

"Shippu where are we going?" I asked, still trying to take in everything that was here.

"Kaede house, she is the village miko," said kitsune.

"A real miko," I said. One of my favorite books about a miko from this time area, it was chop full of history and fantasy. I must have read the book at least a thousand times.

"Kagome was also a miko," the kitsune said.

Mother was a miko; it made sense because she was such a good doctor. People flew from all over to be treated by her.

We stopped at a house at the edge of the village.

"Thee goes there," said a sharp voice that made me straighten up.

"It's us, hag," said Inuyasha.

"An very elderly lady opened up and walk out. She was a big woman with very gray hair and a patch over the one eye. I wanted to ask what happen, but decided not to.

"Ah, thee has bring me a friend," she said.

"I wouldn't call him that," said Inuyasha. "Take care, pup." And with that he disappeared into the woods.

I would had figured that he just found out he had a son, he would want to know a little more about me. But he was acting like he could care less.

"Followed me, boy," said the old woman.

I swallowed and looked at Shippu who just smiled back. I entered the hut and looked around. The place was small with a lot of weird smells, and very dark. Over in the corner was a little shrine dedicated to the household gods. On the far right were some bedrolls neatly siting there waiting to be use.

*************************************************************

I was up at the first sign of light, mostly because I couldn't sleep. I kept thinking this was all a dream only to wake up and find out that it wasn't. I could hear the crow of a roast and the shuffling of feet nearing the hut. These people were use to getting up at dawn to make the most of the hours of sunlight.

I rolled over to see the kitsune still curled up and sleeping. Last night was a very short and silent meal followed by every turning in. There was so much I wanted to ask but couldn't.

I got up and decided to go for a run. Running has always helped me clear my mind and think straight. I got up and change quickly into my track uniform. I felt kind of weird wearing it, but I couldn't go running in my school uniform, or my street clothes. I grab my little Walkman, glad that I had down load a bunch of mp3 onto it, and went on my merry way.

I quickly stretched and took off down village. Some people poked their heads out and watched me run, but I figured that here I was in medieval Japan, finding out that my father was half youkai and my mother was a miko; how much weirder could I feel.

I turned off the road and headed toward the fields. I read that the fields were usually about a couple of miles long, which would give me a good running distance without have to go to far from the village.

I breathe in, not believing how clean and fresh the air smelled. I was used to the stanch of the city, and even those times that we had travel to the country, you could still smell the pollution. Here it was completely pollution free.

I headed towards the back part of the field near the river, listening to a bunch of American punk music that I had down load and trying to figure this whole situation out. My father was an ass, was all I could come up with. Here I had travel five hundred years in the past, and he seemed he didn't want to spend time with me.

Splash!

I stopped as I watched a girl about my age stormed away from what looked like a kid my age in sitting in water. He called out to her, but she did even turn around.

I took my earphones off. "Need help," I asked.

He looked at me strangle, then held out his hand.

I walked a little into the water, feeling it penetrate through the canvas and soaking up my socks, and helped him up.

"Thanks," he said trying to wring the water out of his clothing. I watched him for a moment, trying to take in each detail of how he wore the things I had read about.

"Having girl problem," I asked, watching the girl disappeared in the distance.

He gave me an odd look. "Me… Naa…Woman are like putty in my hands."

"Until he asked them to bare his children."

Don't these people have another name for doing it, other then bearing children?

A young man, that look identical to the one in water was sitting there watching us.

"Twins," I said.

"Nope, never saw this pervert in my life," he said.

"Knock it off, Kohaku and help me."

"Oh you need more help then I can give you Mushin."

"It's terrible day when you have to depend on a stranger, because you own BROTHER wouldn't help you" he said. Then he looked at me. "By the way who are you."

"Akira Higurashi," I said.

"Your not from around here," said Kohaku.

"What was your first guess," I said looking down at my outfit.

"Do man where such skimpy things where you are from," asked Mushin. I guess I looked kind of weird, being that my shorts show almost everything except the kitchen sink, and the tight fitting top. Compared to them, including the wet one, I wasn't wearing much.

"What, don't I look good," I said, turning around.

"Ah, there you are," said the old woman coming up us. "I see you met Kohaku and Mushin."

Both boys smiled and said their greetings to her before walking away. "I wouldn't follow their example," said Kaede. "Come boy, I have something to show you."

We walked towards the village together. A couple of times I stopped to watch what was going on.

"This must be all new to you," she said, tucking her hands into her sleeves.

"All my life, I had dream of going back in time to see things I only read in books," I said and turned to her. "Now I know what Hank Morgan felt like the first time he saw Camelot."

"Camelot?"

I walked on, trying to make sure I got everything, things I could tell Doc when I get back about this place.

"I mediated last on why thee came through the well," she said.

"It was that damn cat."

"No, it had to be something more, what ever pulled thee mother back nineteen years ago, now is pulling thee here now," she said.

"My mother came here?" I really don't know why I was asking this, except out of sheer curiosity. It would be the only way to explain how I came to be.

"Yes, when she was thee age," she said stopping at the village temple. "Come it is here I have something to show thee."

I walked into the dark building. It was nothing like the lighted temple that I was use too. I place reeked of incenses and other herbs, and there were masque hanging everywhere, most of them screwed up in a painful manner.

"There it is," she said picking something off the altar.

I bent down and squeeze my eyes to see it better. It was hard with this deem light. "This is what thees father is protecting." I didn't ask how she knew.

"What is so important about it," I asked. It was nice to look at it, but why kill yourself over a hunk of rock that wasn't even a diamond.

"This is the Shikon Jewel."

That is all she had to say. "Thee Shikon Jewel, the one of the legend." I said couldn't believe it. Most people who had read about would have thought it was a myth. "The one suppose to be guarded by some sort of beast. The one that suppose to have the power depending on how pure the person who touch it is."

"That one," she said.

I still couldn't believe I was touching something like that.

"My sister guarded, and then thee mother."

"And now Inuyasha," I said.

"Thee father does it because of thee mother."

"Madam, if you don't ask me asking," I said. I was dying to know the answer to how and what of me.

"Thee doesn't know. Then thee must find out," she said.

My jaw dropped and I look at her. She was definitely a lot of help.

"But I didn't bring thee here to look at this jewel. I believe that thee was brought here because the jewel calls on it thee family again."

"My family," I asked.

"Thee family has always had a strong connections to the jewel. From thee greatest ancestor, it came. From another of thees ancestor it went back, and from thee mother it came again. Thee is a part of the jewel, and the jewel is not well. But all my mediation and praying has turned up no answer until now."

"It doesn't look sick," I said reaching out to touch it. But when I touch it, I quickly pulled my finger back. It was like I could feel the pain that thing was in.

"Thee were brought here to do what thees mother couldn't," she said.

"Which is."

"Cure the soul of the jewel, bring it to rest."

"Me, you're talking about me. I think you got the wrong person."

"Thee mother thought so of herself, she found out how wrong she was. She brought the jewel together and tamed the heart of a beast."

"I wouldn't call the old man, tame."

She walked outside, and I quickly followed her. I didn't like being in there. The place had a strange vibe to it. As we walked out, I felt a pear of eyes watching me. I looked up to see Inuyasha staring down at me. He looked at me, as if I was the smallest thing on Earth.

"Don't worry about it, he was like this with thee mother," Kaede said.

When we were out of earshot I turned to Kaede. "Miss Kaede, not that I don't want to help, but I got problems I can just ditch school and my life back in my time to go on some mystical quest," I told her. Of course part of me was scream to ditch the school and saddle the horse.

"I understand," she said. "But thee will be able to go through the well, much like thees mother did, when thee want too."

"Well, I have to ask my mother."

She stopped and turned to me. "Thee must keep this as much as secret as thee can."

I turned back and looked at her. "You want me to lie to my mother."

"Thee must understand, there are too many attachments here from that it might destroy her. There was a reason that neither her or thee father will understand, to why she was sent back through the well to never returned."

"But you want me to lie to her."

"For the time being yes," she said.

I looked back at the town, I couldn't make out the outline of my father or the tree but I knew he was around here. Peter Parker must have felt the same way when he was left with the problem of what he should do with his powers.

"And that goes for thee, Inuyasha," she said turning to see the guy who happened to be on one of the roofs. "The boy must complete this quest without anyone who has touch the jewel before."

"Feh, what makes you think I want to help him out," he said sitting down on the roof. I didn't know he had been there. "But you are wasting your time hag, the pup wouldn't stand a chance."

"You don't think I can," I yelled.

"I seen what you are capable of doing," he said. "Go back to your own time and stay there." I was hurt, you would expect much more encouragement out of him, but no just because of one incident that I was freaked out it, and now I am a weakling.

"Don't want his help anyway," I said looking at him. "I'll do it."